For almost 70 million recipients of Social Security and its various programs, the wait is over. New months bring new benefits, which are further increased for the full year 2025, reaching a maximum payment of $5,108 (for a chosen set of beneficiaries).
The May 2025 Social Security payment schedule is based on dates of birth, as is customary. The next closest wizard, May 14, is when recipients whose birthdays fall between May 1 and May 10 will receive their deposit; however, there are two payment dates that follow.
Why will next week’s Social Security benefits only go to one group?
In order to expedite distribution, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has maintained this method since 1997. For those who started receiving payments after May of that year, it is set up as follows:
| Birthday Range | Payment Date | Day of the Week |
| 1st to 10th | May 14, 2025 | 2nd Wednesday |
| 11th to 20th | May 21, 2025 | 3rd Wednesday |
| 21st to 31st | May 28, 2025 | 4th Wednesday |
Because June 1 is a Sunday, those who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) will receive two payments in May: one that was already issued on May 1 and another in advance on May 30.
Not all retirees are eligible for the $5,108 maximum payment
The Social Security Administration (SSA) explained that a number of variables, such as years of employment, documented income, and retirement age, affect benefits.
Only people who retired in 2025 at age 70 and had a history of high earnings during their working lives are eligible for the maximum monthly Social Security payout of $5,108.
Less than 4% of all beneficiaries are in this group. The vast majority are given lower figures; for instance, the average monthly income for individual retirees is $1,976.
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In addition to other considerations like credits obtained for postponing retirement, the 2025 cost of living adjustment (COLA), which was 2.5%, is used to determine that maximum amount.
The benefit cap in 2025 is $2,831 for people who retired at age 62 and up to $4,018 for people who retired at age 67.
Social Security Fairness Act: Higher benefits for some
The Social Security Fairness Law, which took effect in January 2025, abolished the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) provisions.
For public sector employees who received external pensions, these provisions decreased retirement benefits.
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Its removal resulted in increases in monthly payments for almost 1.1 million beneficiaries, including retroactive adjustments disbursed between February and March 2025.
These legal changes are already reflected in May deposits, but it does not mean that everyone will see huge gains.
A far cry from $5,108 per month, the average increase, according to the SSA, was roughly $190. Only those that had been slashed by the GPO or WEP saw significant rises.
There have been no documented errors or mass claims pertaining to May payments. The deposit amounts and dates align with government guidelines that have been previously published.
